Statements in which the resource exists as a subject.
PredicateObject
rdf:type
lifeskim:mentions
pubmed:issue
12
pubmed:dateCreated
2005-9-30
pubmed:abstractText
Aquaporin-4 (AQP4), the main water channel in the brain, is expressed in the perivascular membranes of mouse, rat, and human astrocytes. In a previous study, we used small interfering RNA (siRNA) to specifically knock down AQP4 in rat astrocyte primary cultures and found that together with reduced osmotic permeability, AQP4 knockdown (KD) led to altered cell morphology. However, a recent report on primary cultured astrocytes from AQP4 null mice (KO) showed no morphological differences compared with wild types. In this study, we compared the effect of AQP4 KD in mouse, rat, and human astrocyte primary cultures and found that AQP4 KD in human astrocytes resulted in a morphological phenotype similar to that found in rat. In contrast, AQP4 KD in mouse astrocytes caused only very mild morphological changes. The actin cytoskeleton of untreated astrocytes exhibited strong species-specific differences, with F-actin being organized in cortical bands in mouse and in stress fibers in rat and human astrocytes. Surprisingly, as a consequence of AQP4 KD, F-actin cytoskeleton was depolymerized in rat and human whereas it was completely rearranged in mouse astrocytes. Although AQP4 KD induced alterations of the cell cytoskeleton, we found that the expression of dystrophin (DP71), beta-dystroglycan, and alpha-syntrophin was not altered. AQP4 KD in cultured mouse astrocytes produced strong down-regulation of connexin43 (Cx43) with a concomitant reduction in cell coupling while no major alterations in Cx43 expression were found in rat and human cells. Taken together, these results demonstrate that with regard to these properties, human astrocytes in culture are more similar to rat than to mouse astrocytes. Moreover, even though AQP4 KD in mouse astrocytes did not result in a dramatic morphological phenotype, it induced a remarkable rearrangement of F-actin, not related to disruption of the dystrophin complex, indicating a primary role of this water channel in the cytoskeleton changes observed. Finally, the strong down-regulation of Cx43 and cell coupling in AQP4 KD mouse astrocytes indicate that a functional relationship likely exists between water channels and gap junctions in brain astrocytes.
pubmed:grant
pubmed:language
eng
pubmed:journal
pubmed:citationSubset
IM
pubmed:chemical
pubmed:status
MEDLINE
pubmed:month
Oct
pubmed:issn
1530-6860
pubmed:author
pubmed:issnType
Electronic
pubmed:volume
19
pubmed:owner
NLM
pubmed:authorsComplete
Y
pubmed:pagination
1674-6
pubmed:dateRevised
2007-11-14
pubmed:meshHeading
pubmed-meshheading:16103109-Actins, pubmed-meshheading:16103109-Animals, pubmed-meshheading:16103109-Aquaporin 4, pubmed-meshheading:16103109-Astrocytes, pubmed-meshheading:16103109-Blotting, Western, pubmed-meshheading:16103109-Brain, pubmed-meshheading:16103109-Cell Line, pubmed-meshheading:16103109-Cells, Cultured, pubmed-meshheading:16103109-Connexin 43, pubmed-meshheading:16103109-Cytoskeleton, pubmed-meshheading:16103109-Down-Regulation, pubmed-meshheading:16103109-Dystrophin, pubmed-meshheading:16103109-Electrophysiology, pubmed-meshheading:16103109-Gap Junctions, pubmed-meshheading:16103109-Gene Silencing, pubmed-meshheading:16103109-Humans, pubmed-meshheading:16103109-Mice, pubmed-meshheading:16103109-Microscopy, Fluorescence, pubmed-meshheading:16103109-Models, Biological, pubmed-meshheading:16103109-Patch-Clamp Techniques, pubmed-meshheading:16103109-Phenotype, pubmed-meshheading:16103109-RNA, Small Interfering, pubmed-meshheading:16103109-RNA Interference, pubmed-meshheading:16103109-Rats, pubmed-meshheading:16103109-Species Specificity, pubmed-meshheading:16103109-Time Factors, pubmed-meshheading:16103109-Transfection
pubmed:year
2005
pubmed:articleTitle
New possible roles for aquaporin-4 in astrocytes: cell cytoskeleton and functional relationship with connexin43.
pubmed:affiliation
Department of General and Environmental Physiology and Centre of Excellence in Comparative Genomics (CEGBA), University of Bari, Bari, Italy. p.nicchia@biologia.uniba.it
pubmed:publicationType
Journal Article, Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S., Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't, Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural